PC Gaming and Entertainment Strategist Jason Holtman Leaves Microsoft

Head of PC Gaming and Entertainment Strategy for Microsoft Jason Holtman has left the company six months after being hired, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Holtman was hired by Microsoft in August after over seven years with Valve Software as director of business development. In a statement to GamesIndustry.biz in August, Holtman said "Yes, I have joined Microsoft where I will be focusing on making Windows a great platform for gaming and interactive entertainment," adding "I think there is a lot of opportunity for Microsoft to deliver the games and entertainment customers want and to work with developers to make that happen, so I'm excited to be here."

Holtman left Valve during a period of layoffs last year. Valve co-founder Gabe Newell said at the time, "We're not going to discuss why anyone in particular is or isn't working here."

While Holtman's reason for departing has not been made public, Rock Paper Shotgun posted an interview with Ken Lobb, Microsoft's creative director. In it, he states "We have more support internally to support PC more. That’s great! My only expectation would be, please let us continue to do that over a five-year period so we can have real impact. That’s how it feels right now. We’re getting very strong support internally. So we’re really going after PC."

What do you think? Does Holtman's departure from Microsoft bode well for its future as a maker of PC games? Add to the discussion in the comments below.